Bag handling mechanism



Nov. 28, 1939. LONG 2181503 I Q BAG HANDLING MECHANISM Filed Aug. 19, 19s? 2 Sheds-Sheet 1 ZZ/GW 6607:96 Zoqg;

2 shuts sneet 2 l l, I E TI G. LONG Filed Aug. 19, 1957" BAG HANDLING MECHANISM Nov. 28, 1939.

Patented Nov. 28,1939

CE, I.

, BAG HANDLING. MECHANISM George Long, Joliet, 111., assign'or to Franklin Steel .Works, J oliet, 111., a corporation of Maine Application August 19, 1937, Serial No. 159,876

11 Claims,

- .The invention relates .to bag handling mecha, nisin and has reference particularly to mechanism for use in bag closing machines for adjusting the bags to their proper pack height determined by the material within the bag. v

In bag machines of the fully automatic or semi-automatic type various operations areperformed on the bags as they progress from station to station throughout thev machine. Before the bags can be presented tothe station having mechanism for closing the open end of the bag, it is necessary, especially if a tight pack is desired, to adjust the height of the bag. The level of the material in the bags will vary somewhat even when allthe bags passing through the .machine contain the same material, in the same condition, as, for example, cofiee beans that have been ground to a uniform degree of fineness. Therefore best results in producing a tight pack are secured by accurately gauging the upper level of each bag by the contents within the respective bash. y

An object of the invention therefore is to pro- Vide improved means which will operate ina novel manner to first elevate the bags to an initial pack height whichimay be adjusted to'suitthe particular material passing. through the machine and which will then automatically gauge the upper pack level of the bags individually. A more specific object of the invention resides in the provision of novelmechanisin having V cation in advance of the, bag closing means for elevating the bags to aninitial pack height and in the provision of automatic means having association therewith for additionally elevating the bags to bring the top level of the contents-of each bag to a predetermined pack line. This additional elevating of the bags takes care of variations in pack height due to variable factors so that the upper level of the contents for. all bags at. subsequent stations will be, uniform; p A more specific object is to provide mechanism capable of rapid adjustmentby the operator and which will function to'elevate the movable bottoms of the bag carriers to adjust the bags to an initial pack height; Another object resides in' the provision of nov mechanism which will operate automatically to elevate the movable bottoms of the'bag carriers from their position following the initial pack heightadjustment to move the material in each bag into contact with means determining the constant pack line, or in other words, the upper working level of the bag machine. This automatic gauging takes care of ,;any variation in pack height ldue to small density chang product or other variable factors. I I .1 A further object of the invention resides in the l provision of locking means for locking the movable bottoms; of the bag carriers andwhich can r-be held released during the operation of the .the inventionmay consist of certain novel features of construction and operation, as will be occupying station No. lII.

es in the initial pack height adjuster and also during operation of the automatic gauging mechanism. v

With'these and various other'objects in View,

more fully described and particularly pointed out in the specification, drawings and claims appended hereto.

In the drawings which illustrate an embodi- -ment of the device and wherein like reference characters are used to designate like parts- Figurel is an elevational view illustrating the improvements of the invention, and wherein the bag carrier pockets are shown infour different positions corresponding to four different stations of the ,bag machine; and

Figure 2 isa vertical sectional viewtaken substantially through the center of the mechanism Referring to the, drawings, the bag machine I to which the improvements of the invention may be applied is indicated as including structural partslll, I I and I2, the parts I 0 and-IZforming part of the frame of the machine, whereas, part Il may comprise an upper platform providing a support for mechanism which may have location at other stations of the bag machine. In machines of the general class referred to the bags are supported individually by carrier pockets, one side of each pocket being open to permit a bag to be placed within the pocket and to be removed therefrom following the closing operation. f

In accordance with the-invention the carrier pockets comprise a back plate l4, Figure 2, a pair 40 of side plates l5, and a displaceable bottom plate v The bag H is disposed within the space formed by these four members. Theback plate I4 is fastened to a support block I8 adapted to have sliding movement horizontally of'the rn achine,- which movement is effected by the conveyor comprisingthe roller chain 20. Saidchain, which may be of any conventional construction, has lugs 2| extending therefrom at, intervals throughoutv its length and which lugs project beyond the recess 22 confining said chain. The

sides 15 of the carrier pockets are fixed to L- shaped members 23, the rear ends of which are guided for translating movement by a groove formed in blocl l8. The pins 24 extend rear- L-shaped bar having a vertically disposed leg 35,

tion I, Figure 1.

wardly from the members 23 and provide connecting means for the forked end of bell cranks 25 and 26, respectively. Said pins 2d are joined by a tension spring 21 which passes through a clearance opening in the block l3 and accordingly the side plates 15 of the carrier pockets are resiliently drawn toward each other the translating movement of said plates being permitted as a result of the guided support of the rear ends of members 23. The function of the bell cranks 25 and 26 is to control the movement of the side plates and accordingly the bell cranks are pivotally supported at 28 to a bar 29 fixed to the back plate I4. The inwardly directed ends'of the bell cranks are pivotally connected by pin 3i.

A roller 32 is carried by said pin 3| and when said roller is in contact with the stationary cam 33 the inwardly directed ends of the bellcranks are horizontally positioned to maintain the side plates [5 in separated relation, afiording easy entrance of'a filled bag into the carrier pockets. This will be evident'from an inspectionof sta- However, when said carrier pocket has'moved to station II, roller 32 will have passed-out of contact with stationary cam 33 and 'the tension spring -2l will be-effective to hold the side plates in contact with the sides of the bag. p

The bottomplate N5 of each carrier pocket is fixed tothe horizontally disposed leg -34 of an which latter-is supportedby the guides 36 fixed to theback-plate M for vertical movement to thereby elevate or lower the bag as desired. Means for locking leg 35 to hold the displaceable bottom plate IS in adjustedposition is provided by the locking lever 31 pivoted to the back plate l4 at 38 and yieldingly biased in an upward direction by spring 39 fixed to the projecting arm 40. The outer projecting end of lever 31 carries a roller 4! adapted to contact the underside of the fixed cam bar 42. This cams the lever- 31 to rotate the'same counter-clockwise,- with there- 'sult that the inwardly directed end of said lever is released from contact'with leg'35 and accordingly said leg and the-displaceable bottom of the carrier pocket may-beelevated or lowered as desired. 7

' The release of the displaceable bottom plate of the carrier pocket takes place when the same reaches station I, Figure 1. Leg 35, carrying the roller 43 at its lower end,-will drop to its lowermost position, whereupon said roller will contact the riser bar'M having the end located under station I, slotted at 65, whichslot receives'the stud 46 for supporting said end of the bar while permitting limited pivoting and adjusting movement-of said bar. The other end of the bar 44 is pivotally fixed to stud ll? projecting from" the plate-48, which is constrained by the guides 49 for vertical movement on slide 50. As better shown in Figure 2, the slide 50 is suitably supported from the frame 12 of the machine. Vertical movement of the plate 48 is obtained by turning the crank 5i fixed to shaft 52 suitably journalled in the frame l2 of the machine and rotating pinion 53 having engagement with rack 54 fastened to plate 48. The pawl 55, actuated by-lever 56, looks the rack in position. It will be evident from the foregoing description that by turning crank 55 the riser bar 44 may be set at any desired inclination so as to elevate the displaceable bottom 16 of the carrier pocket to any predetermined level as said pocket is intermittently propelled from station I- to station III.

level of the contents within the bag is in engage- 1 ment with a plunger which determines a constant pack line or, in other words, the working level of the bag machine. The automatic means essentially consists of a lifter bar 58, Figure 2,

supported for vertical reciprocation on the plate 48 by the guides Bil and 6!. The lifter bar 58 is so located on the plate-48 that said bar has contact with roller .63 when the carrier pocket is located at station III. Movement of the plate 48 vertically of the slide 50 will effect vertical movementof theldisplaceable bottom of the carrier pocket. However, this can'be accomplished independently of the plateJtB by the lifter bar 158 which is automatically actuated by means .to be presently describedfor accurately gauging the upper level of thepack.

Thestud :62 projecting from the lifter bar :58 journals allever ts'which pivotallyconnects at its upper end with. a levernii l fixed to shaitfi'i suit- ,ably journalled by platel lB. The end of shaftliE opposite lever. 64 hasfixed thereto IGVBL-Gfi, the lower end .of which carries .a rollerlil. .Engaging said roller isa lifter camtB, the :vertical length ofv its working face beingsuchthat the roller fi'l will always remain in contact within the range of vertical adjustment of the platel48. The lifter cam issuitably supported for horizontal movement by brackettil, it being understood that said liftertcam. is reciprocatedv by :means not shown forming part of the bag machine.

As the carrierpookettravels fromstation II to station III the roller 13 will leave the risenbar and ride ontheuppersurfaceof the lifter bar 58 and guideciifi. :As the carrier pocket comes to rest at stationIII the :plungerh'lli will descend to its: "lowermost position indicated bylfl', shown in This lowermostposidotted lines in Figure 1. tion of the plunger will-determine a constant pack -line. that vis,'the.upper level-of the material. within the bags. In timed-relation with'the. descentof the. plungeryltl the lifter cam -Ga ls yieldinglyactuated in a direction-toward the right,:Figu re 1, into contact withthe roller 61. This causesrotation of the levers fifi and -64 to lift the bar 158a predetermined maximum distance,-for example, one inch. -By"means-oft the roller. 43 in contactwith said bar the displaceable bottom plate It of the carrier-pocket isalso elevated to bring the upper level of the material in the bag intocontactwith plunger It. This prevents further rise of the elevating mechanism but since the lifter cam is yieldingly actuated 1 damage to the parts is prevented.

:The right hand end of the fixed cam'bar 42 terminates as shown in advance of station IILJ The extension 12 is pivoted to said-terminating end and in order to provide for vertical pivoting movementof said extension the sameis supported 1 by the toggle means indicated-generally by numeral i3'and actuated by shaft l-t, which is'rotatedby the bag-machine. i In'normal position the extension 12 of the cam bar is horizontally. disposed; thus maintaining the locking lever 3'! released and allowing movement of the leg- 35 supporting the displaceable bottom of the carrier= =matic gauging will be repeated pocket. Immediately upon completion "of' the gauging operation the toggle is broken and the extension 12 will assume its uppermost position, permitting the locking lever 31 to rise as a result of the'tension applied thereto by spring 39. This action of the locking lever will lock the leg 35 and the bag within the carrier pocket in gauged position. The plunger then rises to its upper position and the lifter bar 58 will drop as a result of rearward movement toward the left, Figure l,

the crank 55 to thereby cause elevation of the bags to an initial pack height as the carrier pockets move from station I to station III. Following this adjustment of the bags the automatic gauging mechanism is operative to further elevate the bags bringing the contents into engagement with the plunger H1. This takes care of any variation in pack height due to small density changes or other variable factors.

The invention is not to be limited to or by details of construction of the particular embodiment thereof illustrated by the drawings, as various forms of the device will of course be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of th claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism having intermittent movement, a plurality of bag retaining receptacles supported by said mechanism and each including a displaceable bottom member, means for elevating the displaceable bottom members as the receptacles traverse the length of said means to locate thebottom members a distance below a predetermined constant pack line, andautomatic mechanism additionally, elevating said bottom members to bring the top level of the contents of each individual bag up to said constant pack line.

2. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism having intermittent movement, a plurality of bag retaining receptacles supported by said mechanism and each including a displaceable bottom member, means for elevating the displaceable bottom members as the receptacles traverse the length of said means to locate the bottom members a distance below a predetermined constant pack line, manually actuated means for adjusting said elevating means, and automatic mechanism additionally elevating said bottom members to bring the top level of the contents of each individualbag up to said constant pack line.

3. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism supporting a plurality of receptacles and having intermittent movement for successively locating said receptacles at various stations, each of said receptacles including a displaceable bottom member, means extending for a plurality of stations for elevating the displaceable bottom members to locate the bags retained by their receptacles a distance below a predetermined constant pack line, and automatic mechanism located at the terminal end of said elevating means for additionally elevating the bottom members to bring the top' level of the contents of each individual bag up to said constant pack line.

4. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism supporting a plurality of'receptacles and having intermittent movement for successively,

locating said receptacles at various stations, each of said receptacles including a displaceable bottom member, releasable locking means forretaining each bottom member in adjusted position,

a riser bar extending for a plurality of stations for elevating the displaceable bottom members to locate the bags retained by their receptacles a distance below a predetermined constant pack line, automatic mechanism located at the terminal end of said elevating means for additionally el vating.

the bottom members to bring the top level of the contents of each individual bag upto said constant pack line, and cam means for holding said locking lever released during the mean pack height adjustment and said automatic gauging.;

5. In a packing machine, conveyor mechanism supporting a plurality of receptacles and having intermittent movement for successively locating said receptacles at various stations, each of said receptacles including a displaceable bottom member, means extending along the path of the receptacles for elevating the displaceable bottom member of the receptacles successively, and manually actuated means for adjusting the inclination of said elevating means.

6. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism supporting a plurality of receptacles and having intermittent movement for successively locating said receptacles at various stations, each of said receptacles including a displaceable bottom member, a riser bar extending along the path of said receptacles for a plurality of stations, said bar elevating the bottom member of said receptacles at said stations, and manually actuated means for adjusting the inclination of said bar.

7. The method of elevating filled bags to their proper pack height determined by the material within the bag which consists in elevating said bags to an initial pack height whereby the material Within the bags will be located a distance below a predetermined constant pack line, and then additionally elevating each bag to bring the top level of the contents of each individual bag up to said. constant pack line thereby accurately gauging the upper pack level of the material.

8. In a method of packaging material in bags, the steps which consist in intermittently moving the bags to successively locate them at various stations, elevating the bags gradually to an initial pack height whereby the material within the bags will be located a distance below a predeterlocating said receptacles at various stations, each 7 of said receptacles including a backing plate fixed to the conveyor mechanism, and a pair of side plates movably associated therewith, actuating means connecting with said plates for moving the plates to increase or decrease the distance there between, means yieldingly biasing said plates in a direction toward each other, and cam means at one of said stations positioned to engage said actuating means to cause said side plates to move apart a predetermined distance against the tension of said yielding means.

10. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism supporting a plurality of receptacles and having intermittent movement for successively locating said receptacles at various stations, each of said receptacles including a backing plate fixed to the conveyor mechanism, a pair of side plates movably associated therewith, and a displaceable bottom member associated with said backing plate and with said side plates, actuating means connecting with said plates for moving the plates to increase or decrease the distance therebetween, means yieldingly biasing said plates in a direction toward each other, and cam means at one of said stations positioned to engage said actuating means to cause said side plates to move apart 20 against the tension of said yielding means.

11. In a packaging machine, conveyor mechanism supporting a plurality of receptacles and having intermittent movement for successively locating said receptacles at various stations, each of said receptacles including a backing plate fixed to the conveyor mechanism, a pair of side plates movably associated therewith, and a displaceable bottom member associated with said backing plate and with said side plates, actuating means connecting with said plates for moving the plates to increase or decrease the distance therebetween, means yieldingly biasing said plates in a direction toward each other, cam means at one of said stations positioned to engage said actuating means to cause said side plates to move apart against the tension of said yielding means, and releasable locking means holding the bottom member in adjusted position vertically of the receptacle.

GEQRGE LONG.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No; 2,181, 605. November 28, 1959.

GEORGE LONG.

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent reqniring correction as follows; Page 5 sec- 0nd column, line 21, claim- 5, for the word acking" read packaging; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same mey conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 25rd day of January, A.- D; 191 .0.

I Henry Van Arsdale,

(Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents 

